Taimour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly

Andrew Brown, Foreign Policy, Sweden's Problem Isn't Immigrants, It's the Internet, 22 Dec 2010 "From the initial evidence, it seems most likely that he was really radicalized neither in Sweden nor in Britain, but in the place where we all nowadays live -- online. Most of what we know about Abdulwahab comes from his online life: a dating site where the suicide bomber advertised for a second wife, with the permission of his first, and his Facebook profile, where he liked both "the Islamic Caliphate" and his "Apple iPad." He posted videos of Iraqi prisoners being harassed by U.S. soldiers and sermons from radical clerics."

Arrests 'foiled significant terror plot'

The Press Association: Arrests 'foiled significant terror plot', 21 Dec 2010: "The 12 suspects, aged between 17 and 28 and at least five of Bangladeshi origin, were held during early morning raids by unarmed officers in London, Cardiff, Stoke and Birmingham on Monday. It is understood the men, a mixture of foreign nationals and some who were born in Britain, were under surveillance for months. Lord Carlile said: 'The briefing I have had shows there to be allegations of a significant plot in the cities mentioned.'"

Taimour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly

Guardian, Stockholm suicide bomber confronted by Luton mosque leaders, 13 Dec 2010 "Taimour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly had been challenged by leaders of Luton Islamic centre over extremist views."

The search for Muslim identity

Qanta Ahmed, Comment is free, The Guardian, Face to faith: The search for Muslim identity, 11 Dec 2010 "[But] as a diaspora Muslim I feel I must belong to the real societies around me, even if I find that by doing so I am aligned with Israelis, Americans and Jews, groups increasingly repugnant to the mainstream Muslim Ummah. I am aligned with them as a physician, and as a Muslim, because we treasure the sanctity of life. The fabric of society is more important to me than any fabric of my clothing. As Muslims, that is our only authentic identity: one where we are human beings first, people of the book second."

Terry Jones

Channel4 News, Koran-burning pastor: why I want to come to Britain, 12 Dec 2010

'How to get better Muslim preachers'

Tehmina Kazi, Comment is free, Guardian., How to get better Muslim preachers, 6 Dec 2010 discusses Facebook, Young Imam, Malaysia, and much more. "The scarcity of universal qualifications for Muslim religious leaders is part of the problem."

IslamPolicy.com

Telegraph, Islamic website tied to MP's stabbing resurfaces under new name, 5 Dec 2010: "Younus Abdullah Muhammad, a founder of both sites, told The Daily Telegraph that IslamPolicy.com was the direct successor to RevolutionMuslim.com which was closed amid the furore over its role in the attack on Stephen Timms, MP for East Ham."

book: 'Young British Muslims'

Just received Young British Muslims, Identity, Culture, Politics and the Media
by Nahid A Kabir (EUP), which I plan to review for these pages in due course.

'Report on Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Hate Crime'

Robert Lambert's and Jonathan Githens-Mazer's previously announced Report on Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Hate Crime is now available. Here's the press release from the European Muslim Research Centre (the full release also has a related al-Jazeera clip):

"The report 'Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Hate Crime: UK Case Studies' is published by the European Muslim Research Centre at the University of Exeter and The Cordoba Foundation, and is sponsored by the Al Jazeera Centre for Studies."

"Download a copy of the the report 'Islamophobia and Anti-Muslim Hate Crime' (PDF: 4MB)"

There's substantial comment on this report online, from a range of perspectives, including in today's Telegraph blog by Andrew Gilligan. Being wrapped up in WikiLeaks at the moment, I've yet to read the report - it's on my ever-expanding reading list.

'The civil war among Muslims in Britain'

opinion piece: Michael Mumisa | Independent Editor's choice Blogs, Independent blogs, The civil war among Muslims in Britain, 1 Dec 2010: "Not wanting to be accused of promoting extremist ideas, soon after the 7/7 bombings most Sunni Mosque committees across the UK imposed a total ban on political discussions in the Mosques. This means that young Muslims are now without an open and safe platform where they can express their political views and have such views examined or challenged by others. They have instead retreated into their bedrooms to search for answers on extremist internet forums."